Magnetic minesweeping underwater electrode



' March.l9, 1946- w. 1.. WILLIAMS, JR

MAGNETIC MINESWEEPING UNDERWATER ELECTRODE Filed April 28, 1943 Patented Mar. 19, 1946 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE MAGNETIC MINESWEEPING UNDERWATER ELECTRODE (Granted under the act of March 3, 1883, as

amended April 30, 1928; 370 0. G. 757) 4 Claims.

netic minesweeping cable.

Conventional cables for the same purpose are generally wound from copper wires which are applied in layers until the proper dimension of cable is attained. A typical cable is one made of one-eighth inch diameter wire applied in layers 1, 6, 12, 18 and 24 wires per layer, respectively,

from the center outward. A disadvantage of such minesweeping electrode cable is its short life. Such copper electrode cables are badly attacked by the products of the electrolysis of salt water occurring during the passage of heavy electrical currents through the sea water between the electrodes. This attack results in the formation of insoluble copper compounds, some of which wash away in the water and represent permanent loss to the electrodes.

It is an object of this invention to avoid such a disadvantage and to lengthen the life of the electrode minesweeping cable very considerably.

A further object of this invention is to provide a magnetic minesweeping electrode cable which not only has far longer life and electrical properties than the conventional cable previously used for this purpose, but also uses considerably less copper in its composition, thus resulting in the saving of this critical material.

This invention is accomplished by omitting the outer layer of copper wires from the cable and substituting instead a peripheral layer of steel wires of the same number and dimension as the eliminated copper wire. The inventor is aware of U. S. patent to Edwards, No. 2,250,907, of July 29, 1941, but while such patent consists of a cable of both steel and copper strands, such patented cable is not usable for a magnetic minesweeping electrode cable, for its construction is such that its life would be no longer than that of the conventional all copper cable, which the cable of this invention replaces.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists in the construction, combination and arrangement of the parts hereinafter described and illustrated in the drawing.

The figure is a cross-sectional view of a magnetic minesweeping electrode cable made up according to this invention.

There is shown at 10 the magnetic minesweeping electrode cable of this invention. This cable 10 consists of a plurality of layers of individual wires similar in dimension and number to that of the conventional all copper magnetic minesweeping electrode cable, whereas it may be made up of layers of l, 6, 12, 18 and 24 wires per layer, respectively, from the center outward. All the inner layers H of the wire are made of copper just as in the conventional cable, but the outer or peripheral layer I2 is made up of steel wires of the same dimension as the wires I I, and hence in the cable illustrated there are twenty-four steel wires l2 forming the periphery of its cable. However, if there are a greater or lesser number of layers in the cable, the essential feature is that the peripheral layer or layers should be of steel Wires while the inner layers are of copper wire. As a result of this construction it has been found that when the peripheral layer is made of steel or of other ferrous metals or alloys, and the inner layers are made of copper, that there is a considerable increased resistance to metal loss. Typical results of tests made with steel wires [2 wound on copper wires H show that with the all copper electrode the weight loss in grams per Faraday is 21.3, while under the same conditions the weight loss in grams per Faraday for the steel periphery copper center electrode cable of this invention is only 3.5.

Besides thus possessing a longer life than the all copper cable, its use provides .a considerable conservation of copper. The bi-metal cable of this invention is considerably less expensive and has the necessary properties of high electrical conductivity, high resistance against metal loss, flexibility and ease of handling. Furthermore, the present cable can be substituted for the all copper cable and used in the same magnetic minesweeping gear in which the all copper cable is used without any alterations.

Other modifications and changes in the number and proportions of the parts may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the nature of this invention within the scope of what is hereinafter claimed.

The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government of the United States of America for governmental purposes without the payment of any royalties thereon or therefor.

What is claimed is:

1. A magnetic minesweeping underwater electrode comprising a plurality of layers of wires, the center of the electrode consisting of wires of cuprous materials and the periphery of the elec trode consisting of wires of ferrous materials.

2. A magnetic minesweeping underwater electrode made up of a plurality of concentric layers of wires, the inner layers being of copper wire and the periphery of the electrode being of steel 4. A magnetic minesweeping underwater electrode comprising a plurality of concentric layers of wires, the peripheral layer of the electrode being entirely of ferrous material, the remaining 5 wires of the electrode being of copper materials.

WARREN L. WILLIAMS, JR. 

